Garage door tilt sensor recommendations

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#1

What tilt sensors are people using on their garage doors?

I've had a Zooz ZSE43 tilt sensor. It worked great until the battery suddenly died (after only a few months). I replaced the battery. It reported battery 100%, and hasn't reported since. It appears to be dead-ish. I can't find any way to refresh it or poll it.

So... looking for a replacement that's hopefully more reliable.

Ecowave has several type. The TILT-ZWAVE2-ECO seems to be a decent price. Is there expensive one all that much better?

What about the various multi-sensors?

#2

What about using a basic contact sensor mounted on a hinge and secure one side of the hinge to the door so when the door is open, the magnet flops away from the sensor?

I've got a couple smartthings multisensors on my garage doors but I've been thinking about repurposing them and using the generic contact sensor on a hinge idea.

something like this:

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#3

That is zwave. You want the TILT-ZWAVE2.5-ECO for Zwave Plus. I use the 2.5 model on my doors and they work great.

There is also a ZWAVE5.0-ECO model out that doesn't use a ball switch internally. I've not tried it yet.

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#4

For what it’s worth, I use an old z-wave GoControl Contact sensor to evaluate the state of my garage door.

This sensor has external contacts, to which I attached a mercury tilt-switch. Open/Closed status have worked perfectly for 2+ years on the same battery.

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#5

If you want a no battery zwave solution, a ZEN16 or ZEN17 relay has dry contact inputs. You can use a prox reed switch wired up to it to read the state of the door. Mount the ZEN16 on the GDO itself, powered from the same plug the GDO is on.

Tailwind makes an excellent bracket/sensor that you can wire up to the ZEN16/17. They have both above door and side rail mount brackets, both are unique and solve the problem of making your own bracket or spacing with wood.

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#6

I have done the hinge/contact sensor, the SmartThings contact sensor in garage mode, and now Zooz ZSE43.

The shock/vibe capability is nice to have. My ZSE43 battery lasted about 11 months (longer than my ST battery). After replacement, battery is reporting 1%, which doesn't bother me since I never trust the value anyway. Long-term, I expect to do the AA battery case conversion popularized with the ST Presence Sensor.

Not sure if the antenna on the ZSE43 is weak or just quite directional. I tend to see low RSSI values in the Z-Wave details, which makes me wonder if it is struggling to communicate and burning up battery. Something work checking if you aren't ready to chuck it in the bin just yet.

#7

Ecolink tilt sensor for me...

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#8

If your garage door is metal, mounting anything to it effects radio signals. And the giant pieces of metal inside the garage don't help.

#9

Thanks for all of the responses. The hinge solution looks interesting but I don't have a spare contact sensor to try it out with and not sure I want to experiment with something new. I don't suspect radio problems as it worked flawlessly until a week or so ago, when it just stopped reporting. I might try removing and repairing it. I have a C-5 hub, so I can't see that much about the Z-Wave details. If repairing doesn't work, I'll probably give the TILT-ZWAVE2.5-ECO a try.

#10

Been running the TILT-ZWAVE2-ECO for 7 years, changed the battery once, maybe twice. You need to adjust the ball can to the correct angle, its easy. There's been a couple times since I owned it where the ball got stuck and I just tapped it. I would recommend it for the price. Using the built in "Generic Z-Wave Contact Sensor" DH.

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#11

I ordered the TILTZWAVE5.0-ECO. It won't be here for at least a week. But [fingers crossed] it does the trick.

I couldn't get the Zooz to even go into pairing mode. The light never flashed no matter what I did. Taking the battery out and putting it back in did get it to report the battery level — once at 100% and once at 87%. But shock and tilt are a no-go.

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#12

Let us know how it works out. I'm wanting to order one but our existing 2.5-ECOs are working fine and I have enough devices to play with already...

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#13

That could probably be debated...

#14

Just to follow up... I received the Ecolink TILTZWAVE5.0-ECO. It paired with no problems and — so far – has worked flawlessly. But, then, the Zooz did also for a while. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that this one lasts.

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#15

The only thing with those (I have one) is if it stops working, it likely is because the bb inside got stuck. tapping it with a pen "can work" but honestly when it stops working just replace it with a mercury switch. They're about $1.50

image

#16

@jabecker mentions he received the Ecolink TILTZWAVE5.0-ECO, which does not have the bb...it is the new model which is listed as having a solid state accelerometer

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#17

Ahh nice... I didn't realize there was a new version... :slight_smile:

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#18

The Ecolink TILTZWAVE5.0-ECO was a few bucks cheaper on Amazon than the TILTZWAVE2.5-ECO, and the solid state accelerometer was a bonus.

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